Uriah Kriegel

The Sources of Intentionality

Uriah Kriegel

Description

What do thoughts, hopes, paintings, words, desires, photographs, traffic signs, and perceptions have in common? They are all about something, are directed, are contentful - in a way chairs and trees, for example, are not. This book inquires into the source of this power of directedness that some items exhibit while others do not. An approach to this issue prevalent in the philosophy of the past half-century seeks to explain the power of directedness in terms of certain items' ability to reliably track things in their environment. A very different approach, with a venerable history and enjoying a recent resurgence, seeks to explain the power of directedness rather in terms of an intrinsic ability of conscious experience to direct itself. This book attempts a synthesis of both approaches, developing an account of the sources of such directedness that grounds it both in reliable tracking and in conscious experience.

The Sources of Intentionality

Uriah Kriegel

Author Information

Uriah Kriegel, Associate Professor of Philosophy, University of Arizona

Uriah Kriegel is an associate professor of philosophy at The University of Arizona. His work centers on consciousness and intentionality. His previous book, Subjective Consciousness: A Self-Representational Theory, was published by Oxford University Press in 2009.

The Sources of Intentionality

Uriah Kriegel

Reviews and Awards

"Kriegel has provided a rich and interesting proposal for integrating two traditionally opposed viewpoints on the nature of intentionality." - E. J. Green, Mind

"this book is an important and original contribution to the theory of intentionality, with many rich and interesting discussions, one that rewards close study and deserves a place on every philosopher of minds bookshelf." - Sean Crawford, Analysis